Chapter 170 - Spoils

“Sorry for the cup,” Kai smiled apologetically.

“What did you do with it?” Lou crouched beside the metal scraps, more confused than upset.

“He failed a magic trick.” Flynn teased him, taking advantage of the distraction to whisper in his ear. “Don’t worry about your sword, I’ve hidden it.” He slipped away, muttering he’d check that no more beasts fell from the sky.

Thank you, this might not be a complete disaster.

“What kind of trick does this to a cup?” Lou asked, studying the tin shards.

“It was an accident. I tried to use an element I’m not good at.” Kai blushed embarrassed. He hoped to leave it at that, but the spirits must have been distracted.

“…Space?” Lou watched him with disbelief. “You’ve also got an affinity for spatial magic?”

How the fuck…

Kai was too taken aback to hide his surprise, and there was no point denying it. “How did you know?”

“It’s the only option that makes sense.” Lou picked up a slice of his cup. “There are a few elements that can cut metal like this at your level, and you also said it wasn’t intentional. That leaves just a failed spatial transit.”

Kai arched his brow. “Did you learn that in your special class?” He thought it was a shadier and more pompous version of the program Flynn had attended, but there might be more to it. There were hardly any mages in the archipelago, and the different types of elemental magic weren’t common knowledge. “What else did they teach you?”

“You know I can’t speak about that,” Lou mumbled uncomfortably.

This is not fair.

“Right…” Kai scowled but didn’t press, examining his injuries to hide his annoyance. The wounds were hidden beneath the layers of gauze that had been expertly tied better than he or Flynn could have managed. Something else Lou had learned in his mysterious class.

Kai winced when he moved his right thigh. The creature’s fangs had sliced him open just by grazing him. If he recalled the bestiary correctly, about half of the species of sea serpents were venomous. He must have won the coin toss there.

I’d already be dead if I was poisoned by a yellow beast.

A wave of searing pain flashed up his right leg when he attempted to stand up. Gritting his teeth, Kai pushed the weight on his good leg and got to his feet.

“Wait,” Lou hurried to his side as if he expected him to topple. “You’ll risk making it worse if you strain yourself.”

Kai let him fuss over him but refused to sit down. They needed to talk before the twins and Ana returned, spirits only knew what a mess it would be with four people poking around. “I drank a few enhancing elixirs to help me in the fight. I’m feeling much better now that the side effects are fading.” He took a few tentative steps with a relaxed smile. “These wounds are barely a scratch.”

Fuck, it hurts.

“You still should take it easy. What kind of elixirs did you take?” Lou checked him over again. “I know it was an emergency, but you should be careful with those things, they can be dangerous.”

“It’s fine, I’ve brewed them myself.” Kai grabbed his arm to make him stop. “Remember that I’m an alchemist, I made sure they have no long-term consequences.”

Dora said it would be fine if I didn’t take too many.

Kai rummaged through his backpack, grateful someone had the foresight to bring it down here. He let Lou help him put on a clean pair of clothes, careful to avoid his injured side. He also picked a tonic for blood loss from his official stash. He had stronger potions in his ring, but he preferred not to overdo it after all the vials he had already drank.

“You’ve got anything to eat?” There was only so much the potions could heal on an empty stomach, and he had vomited his guts out after the fight. He chewed a few mint leaves to clean the taste from his mouth.

“I’ll get you something, just don’t jump around.”

“Deal.” Kai tried not to sound exasperated. Lou had to look after the twins for the last seven years, so he could forgive his caution. He sat down to wait and prepare for the inevitable questioning. He needed to check on the beast's carcass and retrieve his sword. The sea serpent’s scales had been absurdly tough, and he’d be damned if he let them go to waste.

One thing at a time.

Lou came back carrying salted jerky from an unspecified animal, dark bread and a wooden cup of water. Questions and concerns were still apparent on his brooding face, but he seemed willing to wait.

Let’s rip the band-aid right off.

“Ask away. I can see you want to,” Kai chewed the jerky. He was ready to deal with it, but he wouldn’t complain if Lou was hesitant to argue because of his convalescence.

“Can you tell me what happened?”

“A sea snake tried to eat me, and I killed it. You must have seen it. It was pretty damn big.”

“Yes, but how did it happen?”

“I don’t know, it was probably hungry.” His joke was met with a flat face, so Kai decided to be serious. “I’ll need you to be a bit clearer than that. I’m not certain of how that happened myself.”

It wasn’t a lie, and he needed to know what Lou suspected. Vague questions were a good way to let someone confess more than they intended.

Did he learn this at the camp too, or is this just him?

The teen mulled over his thoughts before speaking. “Sea serpents shouldn’t be found anywhere near here. It’s odd it appeared while you were alone in the ruins…” His deep tone softened to not sound accusatory. “Did you know this would happen?”

“Nope.” Kai teased him with a smile before elaborating on his monosyllabic answer. “I was lucky the snake was injured and not very bright. If I knew what would happen, I'd have run away and called for help. I don’t have a death wish.”

I’d have certainly made better preparations. Without Hallowed Intuition I’d be a little snack in the stomach of that overgrown eel.

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“But did you know that something was going to happen?” Lou straightened, glancing at the windows of the tower. “Are we safe now?”

“I think it was a one-time event.” Kai drank a long gulp of water to take time. “I found an unusual concentration of mana in the ruins. I had no idea what it was, and still don’t. This morning I went to probe it, and then, well… you've seen the results. I waited to be alone in the ruins just in case, but I had no idea any of this would happen.”

Lou nodded, seemingly accepting the explanation. “What did you do exactly?”

I thought you’d be more skeptical.

“I’m not sure, I was frustrated and played around with my mana. The waters in the ruins started going crazy, and then that snake came out of nowhere to chase after me. I don’t know if it’s even connected.”

“Do you think you could repeat that?” Lou had his usual thoughtful frown.

“No, and I don’t want to try. One time was plenty.”

“You’re right, sorry I asked.” Lou hurried to apologize. “I was just curious, I’m glad you’re safe.”

Kai deflected his questions with vague answers as they chatted. Whether because he was injured, or Lou simply saw him as the victim, the teen accepted his explanation without insisting.

It’s hard to suspect something that shouldn’t exist like a Fate Fulcrum. And I certainly didn’t plan for a giant snake to appear.

Truth be told, the things Kai didn’t understand were far more than those he did. Apart from skipping on the Fulcrum and the dynamics of the fight, he had been largely honest.

“Are you fine?” Lou asked for the umpteenth time. “And I don’t mean just physically. You were swallowed by a serpent and had to cut your way out.”

“I’m okay, you know I’ve fought beasts before. It was lucky the snake tried to eat me whole.” Kai shrugged. It wasn’t an experience he was eager to repeat, but he had survived. He didn’t understand what all the fuss was about.

Am I weird? I mean, it was probably the grossest thing I’ve ever done, but the snake is dead, and I’ve got a feat. All’s well that ends well and so on.

“It’s fine if you don’t want to talk about it,” Lou said. “Just remember I’m here if you need me.”

“Thank you.” How could Kai be annoyed at him after that? So damn unfair. This conversation had gone differently from what he expected. When Lou had suspected him that day on the beach, he had been far colder and demanding to get to the bottom of it.

Guess he trusts me more now? Damn, now I feel like the bad guy for making him worry.

“Can you help me go check out the serpent?” Kai persuaded Lou to help him climb out of the tower, the dead eel was waiting for him.

I’m gonna make a bag out of you, I bet someone in Higharbor would buy it. There must be enough for an entire clothing line.

The peaceful beach was marked by messy tracks where the serpent had its death throes. The smell of rotten fish reached him first, making him gag. Memories of struggling in the darkness flashed through his mind.

Maybe I’m not completely over it. My poor lunch, don’t you dare move out of there.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” Kai stopped breathing through his nose. “I want to see it.”

The carcass of the beast lay behind an ivory pillar, winding at the feet of the towers. Meters and meters of blue scales gleamed under the sun. A short trail of dark green ichor where he had escaped its body.

How the fuck did I pull it off?

Coiled inside a chamber, he hadn’t realized its true length. If it stretched, it would be higher than most pillars in the ruins. He cautiously approached, expecting those icy eyes to shoot open and rush at him.

Nothing moved. Mana Sense confirmed the serpent was most definitely dead and leaking mana. Dozens of seabirds pecked at its eyes, fins and jaws. More flew in every minute, squabbling to take a bite out of the fallen giant. Kai was happy to let them feast on his prize. He didn’t want to have anything to do with the flesh of that beast.

“Good job killing it.” Flynn balanced his steps on the body of the serpent. A flock of seagulls cawed indignantly when he hopped down. “It must have been awkward on land.”

“Yeah, it was also injured.” Kai jumped on the chance to downscale the fight. As the name suggested, sea serpents lived in the ocean. Another factor that had played in his favor, though slow wasn’t an adjective he would use to describe it.

It was much harder to judge the grade of a beast after it was dead without specialized skills, with a little luck, no one would suspect the snake was Yellow. He just had to chop it up and Reishi would find a way to sell it discreetly.

Wait! Do they think it swallowed me whole by accident?

Kai wasn’t going to argue with them, though it stung his pride.

“I think we should warn the authorities,” Lou said like the matter held little importance.

“Why?” Flynn and Kai spoke at the same time. That was exactly what they needed to avoid. He would tear the scales off barehanded and drag it on his back before he let someone else steal his spoils.

Lou didn’t back down under their gazes, but he switched to his reasonable tone. “It was your kill, so you have the final say. I’m just wondering how you plan to skin it without the proper equipment. And what about carrying it? The hide alone will weigh a couple tons, to not even talk about the bones or…”

With hardly a pause for breath, the teen listed half a dozen logistical problems that made the task highly impractical or downright impossible. Even if he used his ring, it would be far from enough.

“Also, do you have a hunting license?” Lou switched his eyes between them, meeting blank gazes.

“Do we really need one?” Flynn grumbled. “The Republic doesn’t even enforce half of their laws.”

Damned bureaucracy, always needs to ruin things.

Lou scrunched his nose. “That’s true for small game or red beasts, this is not the same.” He gestured to the several tons of dead sea monster. “How do you plan to enter into Higharbor without the enforcers noticing?”

“Wouldn’t that be a reason not to involve the Republic?” Kai said, happy to have a solid argument. They’d certainly take it from him with some bullshit excuse.

Lou faltered before answering. “They gave me a license when I graduated. We could say I was the one who dealt the killing blow, and you supported me. I can get at least half of whatever they manage to salvage.”

Perhaps I should burn it for the spirits?

Kai discarded the possibility just because Kahali might not receive well an offering out of spite. “How do we explain finding a sea serpent on land? I don’t want the governor demolishing another Vastaire site.”

“It’s rare but sometimes beasts stray on shore, and the serpent was injured,” Lou said. “And they’re going to find out either way, it will look less suspicious if we go to them on our own.”

Kai glared at the deep blue scales, clenching his fists. He remembered how his dagger had snapped without making a dent from the inside, and they’d need more than a little cut. Even if he bought more knives in Grey Quarry, the task would still take weeks and not address any of the other problems.

Fuck me.

“Are you sure they won’t scam us?” Kai glowered at Lou even if it wasn’t really his fault.

“I’ll ask for a contract.”

“Fine, we’ll do it your way, but I’ll take out its fangs first.”

“I’m not sure that—”

Kai raised a finger to stop his objections. “You said it came to shore because it was injured. Losing its teeth will make the story more believable. We should also take a few scales to make it look more battered. C’mon Flynn, you can keep whatever you manage to take before the thieves get here.”

The scales were as tough as he remembered, though it was possible to pry them apart along the seams with a sharp knife and a little help from Empower. He used the time to refill his elemental reserves, there was no shot he could dislodge the fangs without Water Magic. Lou left them shaking his head, but Flynn readily took him up on his offer. “It's so long, no one is going to notice if a few are missing.”

I’m so proud of you, I think I’m gonna tear up.

Kai had managed to tear off five palm-sized scales when a shout announced the return of the rest of the group.

“Where did that thing come from? Did it wash up on shore?” Uli abandoned his supply bag to run quicker, while Oli stamped his feet towards them, grumbling. “Why does the fun shit always happen when I’m away.”

Thank the spirits, Lou reappeared with a backpack to explain what had happened, already including himself and Flynn in the fight. “I’ll go find someone to take care of this. I should be back before night, or early tomorrow.” With a final round to ensure they had everything they needed, he disappeared among the greenery.

“I don’t think we should be doing that.” Ana looked disapprovingly at them, a hand over her nose to protect her from the smell.

The twins didn’t have the same qualms. “So I can keep every bit of scale or hide I manage to free?”

“Yep.”

“Can I keep a fang?” Uli stared in wonder at the glass-like teeth.

Kai grinned. “Go wild.”